Indigenous leaders are speaking out against the province because they say they weren’t given a voice over a new northern electoral map that was designed to help boost their profile at Queen’s Park. Seven First Nation communities of the Mushkegowuk Council passed a resolution at their recent annual general meeting in Cochrane, Ont., which demands the government go back to the drawing board for one of two newly mapped districts, Mushkegowuk. “It’s a missed opportunity for our people, for our region,†Grand Chief Jonathan Solomon said. “It was a good thing when they began to look at creating ridings in the north … (but) now you look at the map, what chances are there for a First Nation to be at the legislature when First Nations people (are) a minority?â€â€œThe chances are very slim.â€An arm’s-length commission, struck in May, was given too tight a timeline that didn’t allow for meaningful consultation, Solomon said. “I’m just blown away by the government thinking it got the voices of the people here,†he said. “That’s the sad history of any government. They talk to you. They call it consulting … but they are still practising the mentality that ‘I know what’s best for you.’â€He was backed up by the current Timmins—James Bay representative, NDP MPP Gilles Bisson, and Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler. “The intent of this was to give First Nations a voice, which they didn’t get,†said Bisson. “This is colonialism in full bloom.â€â€œIf that was, in fact, their goal — to increase Aboriginal representation in the provincial legislature — they could have done a better job of not only consulting First Nations, but to involve them throughout the process,†Fiddler said. “Unfortunately that did not happen.†Both chiefs expressed doubt a First Nation candidate would be ...
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